Design and performance evaluation of a master controller for endovascular catheterization.

Area of Science:

• Medical Robotics
• Biomedical Engineering
• Interventional Cardiology

Background:

• Navigating complex vascular anatomy with flexible catheters is challenging.
• Existing catheter control systems often neglect natural manipulation skills and accurate force feedback.
• High costs of current systems limit accessibility for many healthcare institutions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a simple, cost-effective master controller for endovascular catheterization.
• To enable interventionalists to use conventional pull, push, and twist manipulations.
• To address limitations in existing catheter motion measurement and force feedback design.

Main Methods:

• Developed a catheter-sensing unit utilizing contactless camera measurement to avoid friction.
• Implemented a force feedback unit using magnetic force between permanent magnets and a powered coil for axial resistance.
• Evaluated controller performance through accuracy comparison and force feedback experiments.

Main Results:

• Catheter-sensing unit achieved translational displacement errors as low as 0.003 mm (0.01%) and rotational errors of 0.39° (0.33%).
• Force feedback provided a resolution of approximately 25 mN, with a maximum force of 1.5 N generated at 3A.
• Experimental results demonstrated high accuracy in both motion sensing and force feedback capabilities.

Conclusions:

• A novel master controller with a force feedback interface was successfully developed for endovascular catheterization.
• The controller is designed to maintain the natural manipulation skills essential for interventionalists.
• This cost-effective solution enhances the accessibility of advanced catheterization technology.